Endurance Leads to 13th World Solar Splash Title

One year after the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez snapped Cedarville University's five-year winning streak in the World Solar Splash competition, Cedarville used a flawless run in the endurance segment of the 2022 World Solar Splash to win this year’s championship. The competition was held June 7-11 at Champion Lake in Springfield. 

Cedarville finished with 932.78 points, outdistancing the second-place University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez (898.92) and third-place finisher, the University of New Mexico (808.73).

Wright State was the only other Ohio university in the competition, and it placed sixth with 395.70 points. Rounding out the top eight places were Middle Tennessee State University (634.27), Stony Brook University (439.59), Wright State, the University of Buffalo (270.71), and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (189.26).

With the victory, Cedarville has won five of the six past World Solar Splash events, and it is the most decorated team in Solar Splash history with 13 championships. Solar Splash has held events for 28 years.

SOLAR SPLASH began in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1994. Marquette University hosted the event. In 2000 the event moved to New Orleans to drum up interest from more southern teams, and then to Buffalo, New York, from 2001-2005. Solar Splash was held in Fayetteville, Arkansas on Lake Fayetteville from 2006-2010, and then in Cedar Falls, Iowa, from 2011-2013. Since 2014, the event has been held in the Dayton, Ohio region– the birthplace of aviation. In 2017 the event moved from Dayton’s Eastwood Metro Park to its current located in Springfield.

SOLAR SPLASH is a practical educational experience, which helps to develop teamwork and interdisciplinary skills. During the Buffalo years, a few highly qualified High School teams joined the Event as a natural educational path from secondary school to college. The Event combines the fun of competition with education in a way that is not a major disruption to the student’s academic schedule. An entry can typically be pulled together in one school year at a cost of less than $10,000.

SOLAR SPLASH® is the World Championship of Collegiate Solar Boating, and it takes place over five days. Technical Inspections are done on the first day, and the remainder of the time is occupied by five on-the-water competitive events. Points are earned in 7 categories starting with Technical reports that are submitted before teams arrive at the competition. On-site competitions include Visual Displays and Workmanship. On-the-water events begin with a Sprint and Endurance qualifier. This is followed by an event called the Slalom, which is a combination of speed and maneuverability. The final days are spent in the Sprint and Endurance events.

The competition serves as an opportunity for students to compete and showcase their accomplishments. Students learn to use solar energy for transportation purposes and get hands-on experience with sustainable energy, energy management, and the importance of efficiency and good design.

Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 4,550 undergraduate, graduate, and online students in more than 150 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is one of the largest private universities in Ohio, recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, including the Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering program, strong graduation, and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings, and high student engagement ranking. For more information about the University, visit www.cedarville.edu.